Muhammad "King Mo'' Lawal has signed a multi-fight deal with Strikeforce and could make his promotional debut as early as December, according to a source with knowledge of the negotiations.

The deal allows the undefeated Lawal, a NCAA Div. 1 All-American wrestling champion for Oklahoma State in 2003 and decorated international competitor, to continue competing on the Japanese circuit. There, the 28-year-old heavyweight has made a name for himself with four straight victories in the Sengoku Raiden Championship (formerly Sengoku) over the last year. Three of those wins have come by stoppage from strikes, while Lawal’s only decision came after he tore his ACL in the first round of his match with Ryo Kawamura at Sengoku “Seventh Battle” last March.

I've listened to Mo in a few different interviews and his biggest problem signing with the UFC at this point in his career is the fact that he cannot command nearly as much money from Zuffa as he's getting paid by some of these other promotions. The other big problem is with the UFC he'd be fighting ALOT less because they have such a thick roster of talent. And now that his knee is health he wants to be fighting more frequently.

Once he's got some CBS exposure he'll be able to command a high price tag and then it won't matter if he only fights three times a year. That boy's got some smart business sence.

I've listened to Mo in a few different interviews and his biggest problem signing with the UFC at this point in his career is the fact that he cannot command nearly as much money from Zuffa as he's getting paid by some of these other promotions. The other big problem is with the UFC he'd be fighting ALOT less because they have such a thick roster of talent. And now that his knee is health he wants to be fighting more frequently.

Once he's got some CBS exposure he'll be able to command a high price tag and then it won't matter if he only fights three times a year. That boy's got some smart business sence.

Yeah. That is the thing about Lawal, he seems to have a great grasp over mma... both the business and the training. Beyond the fact that he is an olympic-caliber wrestler with a great style to transition to mma with, he seems to get why he should be training with some of the best teams in the world, what is an appropriate fight for him at this stage of his career, how to gain a following in Japan, and how to make money from the start of a career. That is why so many people are intrigued by his prospects, he just seems to "get it" more than almost any prospect in the first few fights of his career.